On September the 16th, 1822, the cradle in which the future Victor Emmanuel II was sleeping took fire. OTL the infant survived and went on to become the first Italian King (I believe that the rumors that the actual VE died and was swapped with a butcher's son are just that, rumors). But what if VE dies? OTL his brother Ferdinand would be born two months later, on November the 15th. From what I have read, Ferdinand was, on the whole, better than his brother, an effective artillery commander of the Sardinian Army with an interest in math and mineralogy. Of course, being raised as Crown Prince would have massive butterflies on his personality but he will hardly become as picturesque as his brother. Assuming he gets on the throne, what kind of King would he be? OTL the relationship between Cavour and VE was a tumultuous one, with the two having radically different agendas. Assuming Cavour ends up on power, how is the relationship between the two? Of course, before that, we need to answer the following question: what are the effects of the early death of VE on Charles Albert psyche and health?